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Join Date

May 2008

Location

Akron, OH

Posts

1,272

This team has lacked urgency all year. They haven't played well since July. They are missing their leaders a lot more than I expected them to. Hines, Smitty, and Potsy were obviously leaders that we held onto as long as possible that couldn't produce on the field anymore but they are missed in the locker room severely. The WR corp looks lost at times without their leader as Wallace and or Brown have not stepped up to become the leader of the group yet. I'm afraid this team is done for the year and maybe next as well because there is some serious retooling that needs to occur. They are going to need leaders to step up not only on the field but off it as well. That is where the true leadership is lacking. The preparation during the week has gone by the way side and no one is there to take hold of the reigns. This team is just so undisciplined.

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May 2008

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Hawaii 5-0

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17,191

Two words define Steelers loss to Cowboys

By PaVaSteeler on Dec 18

There are many words that could be used to describe the ongoing issues that face the Steelers and contributed to their 27-24 overtime loss to the Dallas Cowboys. Two words however, stand out not just for this past game, but for much of the season as well: lackadaisical and lax.

Lackadaisical is an adjective meaning "without interest, vigor, or determination; listless, lethargic". For example: "Antonio Brown appeared lackadaisical given the way he failed to notice the punt was 17 yards short in the last two minutes of regulation".

Lax is an adjective meaning "lacking in rigor, strictness or firmness". For example: Todd Haley was extremely lax in his use of the running game against the Cowboys.

Many of the key Steelers have been in a lackadaisical mind set in four of their last five games. How else to explain the Steelers "coming out flat" against the Chargers and Browns (and before them the Chiefs)? How else to explain more than one player describing a lack of focus, a lack of attention or a lack of determination?

Tomlin brought in Todd Haley to design an offense that would maximize franchise quarterback Ben Roethlisberger's skill sets, but with a "Rooney suggested" emphasis on "running better".

And how well is that "running better" turning out? It's hard for the running game to be better, or even exist when the best back on the team is suspended and the designated lead running back only gets nine touches in an important game.

How else to describe Todd Haley's commitment to the running game against the Cowboys, other than lackadaisical? It seems almost as if while putting together the game plan, Haley thought to himself: "oh, tra la la la la, let's try a run just for fun".

The very first play of the game, Dwyer ran over the left tackle for six yards. He wouldn't touch the ball again until the eighth Steelers play, which came in the second series; Dwyer ran over the left tackle again for four yards but again wouldn't see the ball again until the third series, this time for no gain.

For the entire game, the Steelers only ran the ball 17 times, or barely 30 percent. It is hard to believe Haley felt the Steelers couldn't run on the Cowboys, because in the third quarter he called for Dwyer to run behind rookie RG David DeCastro from the one yard line when the Steelers needed a crucial touchdown to tie the score. If Haley had such concerns over their ability to run, why didn't he call for a fade route to Mike Wallace, even if just to make sure Wallace was paying attention?

Two weeks ago Steelers WR Mike Wallace said: "When I don't get the ball for a certain amount of time, I lose focus sometimes. It hurts me when it's time for me to make a play,"

Last week, Steelers CB Curtis Brown admitted to allowing the victory over the Ravens to cause him not to prepare as he should have for the game against the San Diego Chargers.

Last night, Steelers WR Antonio Brown was quoted as saying: "After the fumble, I got a little lax back there," Brown said.

How else other than lackadaisical can you describe the way Brown has been playing recently? Brown was referring to what he was doing just before Dallas' punt at the 2:11 mark in the fourth quarter, with the score tied and the Steelers' depleted secondary having forced the Cowboys to punt on from their own 17 yard line. Brown was back deep and allowed a 42 yard punt that hit on the Steelers 37, 17 yards in front of him, to bounce its way to him where he side-stepped and watched as the Cowboys downed it on the 20 yard line.

A 17 yard difference in field position in a tied game at the two minute warning in the fourth quarter; how much more of an important point in the game does Brown need to find himself before he's capable of not being "a little lax"? Couldn't he have day-dreamed about the touchdown he scored instead of the fumble he committed?

Lax is how Brown held the ball while returning a punt for 22 yards earlier in the fourth quarter, enabling the Cowboys to easily knock it loose and giving the Cowboys the ball on the Steelers 44 yard line, and ultimately resulting in them tying the score. Lax, as in holding it without firmness, his adherence to proper ball handling lacking in rigor (rigor: an inflexible adherence to something).

This, coming on the heels of last week's lapse where he failed to fall on a loose ball in the end zone and allowed the San Diego Chargers to fall on it for a touchdown.

Lackadaisical is also how best to describe Curtis Brown's obvious mindset after the Ravens game two weeks ago; it's a word he should have used to describe his lack of focus and lack of the proper "spirit" in preparing for the Chargers, who torched him so well.

And lax is a fine word to describe Mike Wallace, from his own confession of "losing focus" during a game. He just can't seem to manage a full 60 minutes of rigorous attention to the game. Wallace played fairly well against the Cowboys, four catches for 95 yards, especially his 60 yard catch setting up Dwyer's touchdown run. Sadly, such effort was for naught as he apparently lost focus again in overtime and only half-heartedly attempted to down Cowboys' LCB Brandon Carr after he intercepted Roethlisberger's slightly errant throw. Wallace hesitated a few too many crucial seconds, which allowed Carr to get to his feet and out-race (?) Wallace down the sideline. Of course, flinching away from a defender approaching from his right to block him didn't show much rigor on Wallace's part either.

This season is already being compared to the Steelers' 2009 fiasco of a year, where they lost five in a row and ultimately missed the playoffs. This year, their streak isn't five consecutive losses, but nonetheless it's four losses out of the last five games, and counting. And while the Steelers still remain mathematically in the hunt for a playoff position, and many fans are thinking "tra la la la la, what's one more loss?", what credible evidence do we have that the Steelers will overcome their listlessness and rediscover the vigor and determination they will need to manage to get to 9-7 and into the playoffs?

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Sep 2011

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This is all on the coaches..When you have turnovers like you do it's fail in basic coaching \ practice
The players should be protecting the football like second nature...If not then the Coaches are not reenforcing
this in practice. Period!!
The play calling and execution has been terrible....
Not having team ready\motivated is on the coaches....

Ben is the reason there not 1-14..throwing that interception wasn't a bad throw..was a bad play call in OT..

Tomlin keeps proving that he is not that great of a Coach and that he inherited a great team from Cowher...

New idea every time you turnover the football it coast you 10,000 to Charity..Think they might care a little more!!!

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May 2008

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17,306

Originally Posted by Sword

This is all on the coaches..When you have turnovers like you do it's fail in basic coaching \ practice
The players should be protecting the football like second nature...If not then the Coaches are not reenforcing
this in practice. Period!!
The play calling and execution has been terrible....
Not having team ready\motivated is on the coaches....

Ben is the reason there not 1-14..throwing that interception wasn't a bad throw..was a bad play call in OT..

Tomlin keeps proving that he is not that great of a Coach and that he inherited a great team from Cowher...

New idea every time you turnover the football it coast you 10,000 to Charity..Think they might care a little more!!!

How can I get admission to all the practices like you got so I can also know what the coaches are reinforcing and working on at practice? When you were at practice last week what did the coaches say or not say to the yeam to motivate them? What was the pre-game motivational talk too?

I think you giving the rest of us this insight will really be beneficial to the rest of us ordinary fans.

Obviously, I'm giving you the business but I'm trying to make a point that none of us know what is going on in practice and to blame the coaches is a cheap shot at easy targets. The players are the ones dropping passes, fumbling balls, etc. I'm pretty certain that the coaches don't teach them to do that. Don't you agree?

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2,576

Originally Posted by Sword

This is all on the coaches..When you have turnovers like you do it's fail in basic coaching \ practice
The players should be protecting the football like second nature...If not then the Coaches are not reenforcing
this in practice. Period!!
The play calling and execution has been terrible....
Not having team ready\motivated is on the coaches....

Ben is the reason there not 1-14..throwing that interception wasn't a bad throw..was a bad play call in OT..

Tomlin keeps proving that he is not that great of a Coach and that he inherited a great team from Cowher...

New idea every time you turnover the football it coast you 10,000 to Charity..Think they might care a little more!!!

Sorry but turnovers are on the players. Players are grown men and should know the importance of ball security at this stage of their careers. Practice time is limited these days.

It appears to me that this team has been ready to play most weeks. The evidence is that they had a chance to win every game only to come undone by MISTAKES by players. Coaches can only motivate players to a certain point. If the proposition of losing hundreds of thousands and millions of dollars isn't enough motivation for players to play well then those players won't be around much longer.

The pass that Ben threw was late and the placement of the ball wasn't where it needed to be. That allowed the DB to make a play on the ball.

I don't know if Tomlin is a great coach. How does one measure a great coach? Every coach that was considered great had good/great players. Tomlin's been good enough to help this team win a lot of games and people still want him gone. Spoiled Steeler's fans.

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Originally Posted by Oviedo

How can I get admission to all the practices like you got so I can also know what the coaches are reinforcing and working on at practice? When you were at practice last week what did the coaches say or not say to the yeam to motivate them? What was the pre-game motivational talk too?

I think you giving the rest of us this insight will really be beneficial to the rest of us ordinary fans.

Obviously, I'm giving you the business but I'm trying to make a point that none of us know what is going on in practice and to blame the coaches is a cheap shot at easy targets. The players are the ones dropping passes, fumbling balls, etc. I'm pretty certain that the coaches don't teach them to do that. Don't you agree?

Wasn't at their practice(would have loved to be there) but, logic tells me based on many things that, if you practice enough you will do better at what you practice.
How do you explain all these turnovers the last several games....

Same with the execution...however long they practice running plays then double that time.. I would make players run up and down a field for an hour holding the ball correctly and if a player
doesn't hold it make them run longer.

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When throwing an out route, you need to lead the receiver and put some mustard on the throw.

That throw was behind the receiver and no "oomph" on it whatsoever.

Ben's our best and most important player by far, but that was a bad throw at an awful time.

Forced patriotism is an oxymoron.

A government leader proclaiming that citizens have to stand proudly for the National Anthem or else they shouldn't be in the country sounds more like a mandated decree from a totalitarian dictator like Kim Jong Un rather than the leader of the Free World.

Our ability to peacefully protest is a fundamental American right, and any attempt by our government to squash this freedom is what is truly dishonoring the liberty that our Star Spangled Banner symbolizes.